Prominent Northern advocacy groups – the Northern Elders’ Forum (NEF) and the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) – have jointly raised strong concerns over what they describe as deepening marginalisation of Northern Nigeria under President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
Both groups, in separate but similarly themed events in Kaduna, accused the federal government of neglecting the region across critical sectors including education, infrastructure, agriculture, and security.
At the Government-Citizens Engagement Forum, organised by the Sir Ahmadu Bello Memorial Foundation, (NEF) Chairman, Prof. Ango Abdullahi, painted a bleak picture of the North’s socio-economic condition, calling it a “national emergency.” He highlighted that 80% of Nigeria’s 20 million out-of-school children are from the North, blaming chronic underfunding and misplaced national priorities.
“If just half of the ₦15 trillion national budget were allocated to education, we would have no child out of school,” Abdullahi stated. “We need ₦7.5 trillion for education and ₦7.5 trillion for roads in the North. That would address two of our biggest problems”.
The former Vice-Chancellor of Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) also decried the deplorable state of infrastructure, especially in the Northeast, calling many of the region’s roads “non-existent.” He warned that a lack of development in one part of the country threatens the entire nation’s unity and progress.
Abdullahi also criticised recent federal decisions such as the relocation of key Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) departments from Abuja to Lagos, the mass retirements of CBN staff, and the lopsided appointment of new directors – only four out of 15 reportedly from the North. “These are not coincidences”, he said. “They are decisions with consequences, and the North is watching”.
Echoing these sentiments at a separate interactive session with federal officials, ACF Chairman, Bashir Ɗalhatu, accused the Tinubu administration of showing “alarming indifference” to the North’s plight, despite the region’s strong electoral support in 2023.
Ɗalhatu condemned the government’s handling of security in the North, citing “unprecedented levels of violence” and a proliferation of insurgent groups. He also faulted the government’s agricultural policy, noting that allocations remain below 5% of the national budget – far below the 25% recommended by the Food and Agriculture Organisation, (FAO).
“Beyond security and agriculture, the federal government has failed to prioritise transportation, electricity, education, and healthcare in the North”, Ɗalhatu stated. “We’ve engaged the Presidency and key stakeholders repeatedly, but the response has been woefully inadequate”.
Both NEF and ACF leaders warned that continued marginalisation and neglect of Northern Nigeria could lead to deeper instability. They called on President Tinubu to urgently increase funding for critical sectors, promote inclusive governance, and implement targeted policies to lift the region out of poverty and crisis.
Abdullahi further urged the decentralisation of industrial development, advocating for the creation of agro-allied processing zones across the North to harness its agricultural strengths and spur economic growth. “We cannot continue to be just a food basket. The North must become a value-adding industrial zone”, he stated.
The two elder statesmen concluded with a call to action for Northerners to shift from silence to civic engagement. “If we do not speak-up and insist on fairness, the marginalisation will continue, and our children will inherit a more broken and divided nation”, Abdullahi warned. “This time, we expect answers”.
